My Grandmother was a genius

 PROMOTING INDUSTRALIZATION IN NIGERIA.

“Starving research and development are like eating the seed corn” … Mitt Romney. Two days ago, I saw this statement on a friend’s Facebook (FB) timeline and this statement captured my attention, it becomes a disturbing urgent concern because we have given a deaf ear and blind eyes to the cry of freedom of the research and development industry of our subconscious.

When I was ten (10) years old, my grandmother who believed in critical analysis and explanation, never saw the four walls of education but observed and data for futuristic references, she will always call, ‘’Uche… chukwum’!!!’ ‘’bring my Dishio..nary bookings, I hav my  writ’’ in her tribal accent.

She often asked the question, ‘’WHY’’, she was sensitive and curious about happenstance, at Ninety-Six (96)  years of age , she could still recite buy palm nut from women to produce oil for local consumptions.

She made a remarking statement that has lived with me for the past fifteen (15) years after her death. In her words, “God create many tins, man no know any tin.’’

 it becomes a great point of reference to draw inspiration, man has constantly lived with the trauma to understand his environment without critically observing and intentionally questionioning  on how and why certain  things needs to be.

However, from the onset, questions have lived to be answered and these questions are gradually been answered.

Industralization  have always been a silent leader to the swift transition to greatness of any nation who have struggled from the plagued of dilapidation and economic meltdown.

‘’The common facts of today are the products of yesterday's research’’. History keeps notifying, that in the ninetheen eighties (1980’s) there was a drastic growth in the research and development work that has been carried out along oil and gas lines in the United States. A similar growth has been established in other parts of the world, particularly in Europe, However, United States commands the strongest in the world. 

 Naturally, questions keep arising as to why the oil and gas has made such a large expansion in research and development work, and the answer to this is that it has found research and development work to be very profitable and a major bedrock of liberation to any industry wishing to live free from industrial  stagnancy.

This becomes the answer to many questions which may be asked by generations to come.It becomes an organise procedure of trying to find out, ‘’what we want, what we need to do to get what we want and what we are going to do after we cannot do what we are doing now’’?

Research and development is seen as a careful and detailed study into a specific problem, concern, or issue using the scientific method. It is the adult form of the science fair projects back in elementary school, where you try and learn something by performing an experiment.  

Mentioned below, relates the basic bedrock; where  research and development project could effectively thrive.

Three Purposes of Research

There are countless purposes for research, but I will dwell on this three; Exploration, Description and Explanation. Personally, these are the three most influential and common purpose of research.

Exploration: These involves familiarizing a researcher with a topic. Exploration satisfies the researcher's curiosity and desire for improved understanding. It tests the feasibility of undertaking a more extensive study. Exploration helps develop the methods that will be used in a study.

Description: These involves describing situations and events through scientific observation. Scientific descriptions are typically more accurate and precise than causal ones. For example, the Nigeria Census uses descriptive social research in its examination of characteristics of the Nigeria population.

Explanation:  Involves answering the questions of what, where, when, and how. The studies answer questions of why. For example, an explanatory analysis of the 2020 bureau of statistics (NBS) data indicates that Forty percent of people in Nigeria live in poverty, figures published by the statistics office showed, highlighted the low levels of wealth in a country that has Africa’s biggest economy.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in a report about poverty and inequality from September 2018 to October 2019, said 40 percent of people in the continent’s most populous country lived below its poverty line of 137,430 naira ($381.75) a year. It said that represents 82.9 million people. In addition, further study of poverty and gender orientation could lead to a deeper explanation and eradication of this issue.

Nigeria oil and gas industry have a lot of work to do in positioning the nation, as  frontiers of research and development at every spheres of influence.

The Nigerian Oil and Gas Development Law 2010 defines local content as “the quantum of composite value added to or created in Nigeria through utilization of Nigerian resources and services in the petroleum industry resulting in the development of indigenous capability without compromising quality, ‘’health, safety and environmental standards (H.S.E) ”.

It is established within the context of growth of Nigerian entrepreneurship and the localization of assets to fully realize Nigeria’s strategic developmental goals. The need to invest in the development of local skills, oil and gas technology innovation, use of local manpower and local manufacturing products to enhance productivity and economic reformation is a great deal of concentration.  To facilitate more practical definition, one could say that local content is building a workforce that is skilled and building a competitive supplier base.

For the new Nigeria to find its freedom, skepticsm to Research and Development (R&D) should not only be an idea on the legislative table, but an actionable machinery to convey the sustainability of this freedom to a greater height. Proper activities should be facilitated to innovate and introduce new products and services. It is often the first stage in the development process. The goal is typically to take new products and services to market, increase its value chain and add to the countries bottom line.

Strong investment in Research and Development (R&D) is very crucial to the Nigeria oil and gas industry, constant flare for growth in human activities will trigger developing new products that will enhance sustainability in the oil and gas industry. It is hard for a country to remain competitive if it does not stay ahead of the technology curve.

 Research Quotient (RQ) always tell firms (and investors) the increase in revenue and market value they can expect from an increase in research and development  (R&D) investment on the long run.       

The need for resource-rich Nigeria to control the  upstream, midstream and downstream in the  oil and gas industry should be creatively acknowledged.

·  Upstream is commonly known as the exploration & production (E&P) section.  It covers all activities related to searching for, recovering & producing crude oil &/or natural gas from underground or underwater fields.  This sector covers the drilling of exploratory wells & subsequently drilling & operating the wells that recover & bring the crude oil/or raw gas to the surface. Over the years Nigeria has gained tremendous experience in the oil and gas exploration and production activities which  are proven recoverable reserves of about 38 billion barrels. her inability to source local resource in other to sustain its wealth which will directly and positively affect the  nation, reduce poverty, unemployment and too much dependency on the government, perhaps its a clear picture that the research and development are neglected in the economy.

 

·  Midstream activities include the processing, storing, transporting and marketing of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. The need to deeply invest in research and development to understand the value chain of this sectors will contribute immensely to the fast rise of the  financial curve of this nation.

 

·  The downstream sector covers the processing of crude oil, its distribution as well as sales. The downstream is one of the sector  people have leverage on, but it has never been the major backbone to the economy monetary inflow or its sustainability, rather it has only enriched individuals and organizations who were oppurtuned to operate at that level.

 

These challenges have their expression in how Nigeria can derive maximum benefits from oil and gas operations through optimal use of local competences and resources as practiced in Venezuela, Brazil,  Indonesia, Norway and other climes. Although these countries started oil exploration and production activities after Nigeria, they have largely recorded remarkable success in their efforts to grow the local content in this strategic industry.

 

Effective management of Research and Development  activities is a key factor that will  allow achievement of future growth. These contributions will eventually lead to the sustainable expansion of the oil and gas knowledge base in the country,  if this idea is encouraged in Nigeria, Local capacities will be built and over dependency will reduce  which will increases a better technology capacities, products and processes innovation.